Muy Bueno: Fiestas 
Mini Apple Pies
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It’s a snow day today! Perfect day to stay in pj’s and snuggle up with the kids and watch a marathon of Little House on the Prairie. Ok, maybe I’m just fantasizing now. My kids think it’s torture when I want them to watch LHOTP with me.
Ok, so back to reality, it is the perfect day to stay in pj’s and bake.
The dough for these mini pies is very simple to make – only a handful of ingredients…flour, salt, sugar, shortening, and a splash of water. It is the same dough recipe I use for this Pear Galette, Fig Galette, and Rhubarb and Strawberry Crostata.
The apple filling on the other hand is what takes time to make. The slow simmered apple filling is very similar to the way my grandma used to make apple preserves for empanadas. This filling makes quite a bit and you will have plenty of leftovers, so refrigerate or freeze the preserves to make Apple Empanadas just like my grandma used to make.
These mini apple pies can be made in a muffin tin or mini skillets – either way they are the perfect size dessert for that sweet tooth craving. I have a thing for mini-desserts. You might remember these Mini Pumpkin Pies.
With Valentine’s Day around the corner these delicious sweet bites are perfect to make your loved ones and sure to win hearts.
Photography: Jenna Sparks
Mini Apple Pies
Ingredients
Filling:
- 4 cups water
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 8 ounces piloncillo or granulated sugar
- 15 Golden Delicious apples, peeled, cored, and chopped
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
Pastry:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
- 1/3 cup butter flavor all-vegetable shortening
- 3 to 5 tablespoons warm water
- 1 egg yolk plus 1 teaspoon of water, for the egg wash
- Turbinado or raw sugar, to sprinkle on top
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Instructions
Filling:
- Bring water to a boil in a large pot. Add the cinnamon sticks and cover tightly with a lid. Remove from the heat and steep for 1 hour or until cool. Discard cinnamon sticks.
- Bring cinnamon water to a boil and stir in sugar until it dissolves and then add apples and simmer on low for 45 minutes.
- Remove about 1/3 cups of liquid from saucepan, reserve, and let cool.
- In a bowl combine cornstarch with cooled cup of liquid and stir.
- Pour back in mixture to thicken filling.
- Stir and simmer for an additional 10 minutes to a thickened consistency of preserves. (If runny add an additional tablespoon of cornstarch combined with 1/8 cup of reserved juice and simmer mixture for an additional 5 minutes).
Pastry:
- In a bowl, combine all the dry ingredients. Add the shortening and combine until you have the consistency of small crumbs.
- Place dough on a lightly floured parchment sheet, roll out the pastry to a 12 to 14-inch circle.
- Use a 4-inch round cookie cutter and cut 5 to 6 circles.
- Place each mini pie crust into a greased muffin tin. Fold over where necessary creating a creased effect.
- Pour ¼ cup filling into each mini-pie.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
- Brush egg wash onto crust and sprinkle raw sugar over dough and filling.
- Bake mini pies for 30 to 35 minutes, until the pastry is nicely browned and crisp. Serve warm or at room temperature.
5 Comments on “Mini Apple Pies”
Hi Yvette, I’m going to make the mini pies today. My question is about using the leftover apples for the empanadas. How do I measure out how much apple mixture to use with the sour cream and other filling ingredients listed in the empanada recipe?
I think the directions for the crust are in correct??? Thank you.
They look so good, I’ll take one with soom cool whip, with a cup of chocolate
Oh your house must have smelled so good while these were baking! I love apple pie!
Yumminess, as soon as I can, I NEED to make these.